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Albion House Opens in Kent's Seaside Town Ramsgate

The seaside
town of Ramsgate in Kent has another string to its bow - the newly opened Albion House - occupying an
elegant Regency building in one of the most prominent positions in town.

Owners Emma and
Ben Irvine and John and Gay Haines, stumbled on this Grade II Listed building
in 2010, and set about transforming the run down former municipal offices,
spending £1.5m along the way, into an elegant fourteen bedroomed boutique hotel
with restaurant and bar.

The building
takes pride of place on Ramsgate's East Cliff with views over Royal Harbour,
and, on a clear day, across to the French coast. Built in 1791 as a private
house its fascinating history includes spells as a lodging house and
gentleman's club, as well as more recently as the seat of the Mayor. In fact,
the young Princess Victoria is known to have spent a particularly poignant time
in her early life recovering here from an illness.

The quartet of
owners all brought expertise to the table in the renovation project including
Emma's architectural eye for detail, Ben's engineering background and Gay's
drive to make it the perfect destination for Londoners looking to get away to
the great British seaside. They have lovingly brought the interiors back to
their original grandeur, collaborating with antique and interiors specialists
Fontaine Decorative. Every effort has been made to recreate the Regency
features, which would have been found in the house when first built, whilst
offering the comforts and luxuries of a hotel.

Rooms and Suites

A sweeping
staircase leads to three floors housing 13 rooms and suites. The 14th room is
accessible by a lift in the lower ground floor for those not wanting to use the
stairs. Expect clever design features such as hidden 'jib' doors which lead to
the stunning Carrara marble en suite bathrooms. Other details include French
antique furniture, wool and cashmere Naturalmat beds, original 18th century
cornices which have all been remoulded where necessary and Lefroy Brooks
bathroom fittings.

Twelve of the
rooms have sea, harbour or beach views and retain features such as 18th century
shutter panelled windows and elegant cornicing and architraves. The Drawing Room Suite is very
special with its open fireplace and large wraparound balcony and Little Victoria's Room, where the
young Princess Victoria recuperated in 1835 also has access to a sea facing
balcony. Both have superking beds and enjoy the last of the setting sun over
the harbour. Toiletries are White Company (soon to be Voya).

Up at the bar

The deep sage
green Town Bar is located on the ground floor with sea views through floor to
ceiling windows and was once the seat for the Mayor and local Councillors. The
original council desk has been reworked into an impressive bar unit retaining fun
features such as the inkwells, as well as antique chesterfield sofas and chairs
upholstered in salvaged French mattress covers. A range of bar snacks,
nibbles, cheeses and charcuterie are served with cocktails and wines from a
well-stocked cellar. Or, choose the 'Time with Wine' wine tasting experience
and listen to experts explaining every aspect of wine production. The baby
grand piano, vintage prints and mirror complete the look.

Dining

The light and
airy deep navy blue and white Dining Rooms on the ground floor have sea views
and crisp white tablecloths. Also open to non-residents for lunch,
afternoon tea and dinner, dishes from the dinner menu including fillet of hake
with roasted beetroot, harissa marinated rump of lamb or lime & jerk spiced
sea bass.

Guests buffet
breakfasts are also taken here and include pastries, croissants, yoghurt,
berries and a hot menu such as Eggs Royale.

What's next

The next stage
of the development will see the basement brought back to life with wine cellar,
a private dining room housed in the original Georgian kitchen as well as a
Seaweed Spa. Expect a more spit and saw dust approach to this 'below the
stairs' area designed for late nights with good friends.

About the Isle of Thanet

The Isle of
Thanet sits at Kent's east tip and boasts several resort towns along its
stunning coastline, including Ramsgate with its growing creative vibe and its
magnificent Royal Harbour. The area's 32 miles of long, wide and empty
sandy beaches with stunning white chalk cliffs make for great walks and cycle
rides, as well as a wide choice of restaurants and bars and interesting
independent shops and galleries.

Rates

Rooms start
from £145 per night including breakfast with Suites starting from £275 per
night. Children are welcome.

Albion House Hotel is
located in the seaside town of Ramsgate in Kent. It can be reached in just over
an hour from London by train on the Channel Tunnel high speed line and parking
is available on Albion Place.

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